The Shyest Girl
by Mishi Nagano
Summary: Mishi is a young girl, about 16 years of age. Kyou is an orphan, and has been since he was born. It's winter time, the weeks of Christmas Day and the following week after New Year's Eve. Rated M for future chapters, maybe.
1. Perfect

Chapter 1-Perfect

The shyest girl I had ever met. The girl I called "weird" all this time. The girl who knew what it felt to be rejected. The girl that had the bruises, but never answered why. The girl who seemed so afraid of going home. The girl who wanted to and did fall in love... With me.

It was December 24th, 11:00p.m. It was a cold night. The sky was clear, the moon has a silver glow and the stars shone brightly. The snow covered the ground; with the exception of clumps of grass, the withered blades jutting from the ice. The water hadn't frozen over yet, mirroring the mountains upon its liquid canvas.

All was quiet.

I spotted her on the bridge. It was Mishi Nagano. She looked happy yet sad. Her eyes blue, no pupils to be found. Her pale white skin matched the moon's glow.

Her long, dark purple hair almost matched the color of the night sky. She was staring at a single leaf hanging on a branch on the tallest tree in the village, the only tree with a leaf still hanging on it. I silently walked up to her. She didn't notice me.

"Hi Mishi." I greeted. She jumped; I guess she was a bit startled. She turned to see me.

"H-Hi Kyou-Kun." She softly said. She looked down and started tapping her fingers. It took me a while, but I figured out that Mishi tapped her fingers when she was nervous or excited.

"Why aren't you home with your family?" I asked. I guess she could've asked me the same thing, except... I don't have a family.

"I wanted to see if the last leaf had fallen yet..." She softly answered.

"You know... They say that... If you catch the last leaf of the season... And make a wish... It will... Come true..." I looked at her. She looked amazed; it was like she went off into her own world.

"Isn't it pretty tonight? If only I could see it snow... Then everything would be... Perfect..." She softly said.

I nodded. She stared at the leaf again. I stared, checking my watch; it was 11:59p.m. One more minute until midnight. She stared at the leaf again. One more minute until midnight I thought to myself.

"Well... I'll guess I'll be going... Good night, Mishi." I said.

"Night, Kyou-Kun," she said back to me. I turned around to make my way back home, I didn't even take half a step when a soft breeze blow. I heard a snap. The last leaf was falling. I reached out to grab it.

I caught it, but someone else had caught it also. I turned my head to find Mishi looking at me. She was blushing. We didn't let go of the leaf.

"Well... What happens..? Ha-ha do we both make a wish..?" Mishi asked.

"To tell the truth... I'm not sure." I laughed, Mishi laughed too. She closed her eyes and blushed even more. I decided to make a wish, just for the fun of it.

Suddenly, I felt myself getting closer to Mishi. I closed my eyes I felt something on my lips. I was kissing Mishi. When I opened my eyes, Mishi was leaning on my chest, smiling. We were still holding the leaf. I felt myself blush.

"Mishi..." I started to say.

The shy girl I knew didn't seem so shy anymore. The girl I called "odd", didn't seem so "odd" anymore. The girl, who was always rejected, wasn't. The girl, who fell in love with me, was the girl I had fallen in love with.

"You know what?" I continued.  
"What..?" Mishi softly said.  
"Now... It's perfect..."

And she agreed with me. We stayed like that till Mishi started shivering. So, I took her in my arms and headed to her home. The streets were empty; no one was out this late. Except for the two of us. I kept her close so she could keep warm, also, so she would be close to me.

It felt right having her next to me, her soft hand in mine. How come I couldn't see this before?

As we turned the corner of the fence, I could see her front door up ahead. I kept walking but a tug of my arm had me turning around to see Mishi, just standing there.

"Kyou-kun," she blushed and hugged me, "thank you but I can walk the rest of the way. My father wouldn't like it if he saw me coming home so late with you."

I smiled at her, "Alright, Mishi. I'll see you in the morning then, good night." I left a kiss on her lips and walked away.

"G-Good night, Kyou-kun..."


	2. The Next Dream

Chapter 2-The Next Dream

_ "G-Good night, Kyou-kun..."_

Slowly, as the yells of my sister and mother arguing reached my ears, I woke to the sun blinding my eyes.

"Get up, Nita!" I heard my mother screaming. Three bangs echoed throughout the house. "Now!"

I swung my legs over to the side of the bed, letting the shag carpet tickle the ends of my toes. Stretching, I spread my fingers and lifted my arms well above my head, then let them drop back to my sides.

I stood up and walked over to my mirror. I had a tumble weed where my hair used to be. Fighting with the knots, I brushed my hair down smooth.

As I went to grab a change of clothes from my dresser, a leaf blew in from my cracked window. It landed softly on my left foot. It was orange and brown, just like the last leaf. At the thought of the last leaf, my cheeks grew in temperature, and probably darkened in color.

I sighed. "Sadly, it was only a dream. Kyou-kun would never kiss me. I doubt if he even knows I exist..." I sighed again.

I picked up the little leaf and sat it on the top of my dresser as I opened the top drawer of the Oak dresser.

Digging through the top drawer, I found a lavender t-shirt with black horizontal stripes. I tossed it on my bed and grabbed a pair of black leggings. Along with a purple skirt and matching jacket.

Quickly, I changed and turned on my radio. "Paparazzi" by Lady Gaga was playing. As it played, I danced and sang along with the music. Twirling and singing, "And I wont stop till that boy is mine." That is, until my mother started knocking on my door.

"Mishi?" She opened the door and peeked in, "Ah, good. You're awake. Breakfast is ready." She smiled at me and looked at my face. "You look prettier everyday, you know that?"

I smiled back at her, "Thank you, Mother. How could I forget when you remind me everyday?"

She shrugged her shoulders and left the room, leaving my door open. I cut my radio off and walked out of my room, shutting the door behind me. My feet went from carpeting to linoleum, causing me to lose my balance and slip. I hit the floor hard; butt first, then head. Opening my eyes, I saw my father staring down at me.

Gulp. I jumped up and brushed myself off.

"You should be more careful, Mishi-Chan," he looked at me in the eyes as he spoke, melancholy, to me.

"Y-yes, father. I was in a hurry and I forgot of how slippery the floor was..." I looked down at the floor, avoiding his gaze that always seemed to bury itself in my skin. It made me want to turn around and hurry back inside my room, locking the door and never come out again. That was the power he had over all of us. My mother, sister, and me, we we're all kept captives in our own home. My mother had lost almost every one of her friends, for father always scared them off or threatened them. Nita was afraid of all guys at school. When she was given a male teacher, she freaked and had a panic attack. She was in the hospital for a week.

And me...I'm the girl who stays in the background. Well, that tries to stay in the background. It's been impossible ever since the day I tripped in the hall, once at school. The day I met Kyou Urinano when he helped me pick up all of my things off the school hallway floor. And now, I'm noticed by everyone almost in our grade. Some of the upper classmen even notice me.

My world became suddenly unstable and shaky.

"Mishi!" My father was shaking me. "Listen to me, damn you! I am your father," he raised his hand, high up in the air, "and I will NOT be ignored!"

I quickly covered my face with my forearms. I didn't want any bruises on my face. The excuse of "I ran into a door" was running really thin from using it so much. Tears formed in my eyes as I felt the air from the impending smack. Less than a split second, my breath was gone and a sharp pain had started at the crown of my head and was splintering farther out. I fell to my knees, clutching the back of my head, trembling in agony and terror.

My mother heard my scream and came running down the hall. As my father rose his hand to strike me again, my mother grabbed his arm, fearfully.

"If you leave any bruises, people will start asking where she got them!" My mother pleaded, desperate to save me from further torment. "And you don't want that, do you?"

I stayed curled up on the floor, anticipating the next strike. Then, I heard footsteps. My father's footsteps.

"You're correct. That wouldn't be good," he turned to face her. "Wouldn't want people thinking you're abusing the children, now would we?" His famous theoretical questioning. He always used that on us. Mainly, mother. He turned back around and started walking to the dining room for breakfast, as if nothing had happened. I lifted my tear stained face up to my mother. She looked at me with sorrow filled eyes. She mouthed 'I'm sorry, darling', to me, and offered me her hand. Grabbing it, I pushed of with my knee, only to stumble and almost pull her down with me. She gripped my shoulders and lifted me up off the floor, like she had million times before.

After breakfast, father left for work, leaving the three of us to freedom. We cherished what time he was gone off to work, or anywhere that didn't involve us going with him.

As Nita helped mother put away the dishes from breakfast, I pulled on my shoes and headed for the front door. "Mom! I'm going out! I'll be back later!"

"Ok, just please be careful." She popped her head out of the kitchen, "and if your head starts hurting, come straight home. Ok?"

I opened the door, and stepped out into the sun, "Yes, ma'am. I will. I don't plan on being out very late." I went through the door, grabbing my purple jacket, and closing the door behind me. I walked down the steps to the sidewalk. There were dark clouds off in the distance. "Must be going to rain later."

I went to the restaurant at the corner of my street. It served the best pizza in the area. Barbeque chicken, bacon, and ranch sauce all combined on to it; it was delicious. It made my mouth drip at the scent that came from the open windows. Walking in, I spotted an open booth to the far right wall, at the one window that wasn't letting out any warm air. I took a seat and waited for someone to take my order. Someone came up to me and, thinking it a waiter, started telling them what I wanted.

"I'll take a medium-sized pepperoni and chicken pizza, please." I looked up at the 'waiter', and promptly felt my cheeks turn hotter than the sun.

"Hey, Mishi!" Kyou flashed his famous grin, "If you don't mind, when an actual waiter comes to take your order, can I join you for lunch?" He looked at me and kept smiling down at my stunned, flushed face.

'K-Kyou...' I thought to myself, 'wants to e-eat lunch wi-with me?' I looked down while poking my index fingers together, and nodded. "S-Sure, K-Kyou-kun..." I said, looking back up at him, "I'd like that."

Still smiling, he sat across from me in the booth. We sat, waiting in silence, for 10 minutes. Then, someone finally came to take our orders. We changed the pizza to a large and Kyou ordered a thing of cheese sticks. We each ordered a Pepsi. After eating half the pizza in silence, he asked me something that I definitely was not expecting for him to say.

"So, Mishi," he reached across the table and took my hand, "did you enjoy last night?"

"W-what?" I said, shocked. "What do you mean, 'did I enjoy last night?'"

He chuckled, shaking his head. "Do you not remember last night, Mishi?"

He looked confused and sort of disappointed. Like as if I not remembering last night actually upset him, or maybe even hurt him. What could have happened last night for to of been so important that I remember?

_ "G-Good night, Kyou-kun..."_

"My dream!" I looked at him, mouth agape. "The last leaf. We both catch it. That was real?" I pleaded with my eyes that it be true. I needed to hear those words. The ones that would tell me that my dream had finally come to life.

He smiled wide at me. "Yep. And us-"

My mind started wondering. I drifted away from Kyou and the restaurant and everyone. I settled into my own little world. Until I remembered when I did that this morning. I snapped back to the world, only to see Kyou reaching towards my face. I clenched up, covering myself with my arms and pulled my knees up to my chest.

"No! Kyou-kun! Please, I'm sorry!" Tears formed in my eyes for the second time today. "I didn't mean to faze out, I swear! Please don't hurt me. It won't happen again!" Sobs filled the surrounding area as I trembled in fear. I froze as I found myself wrapped in two strong arms. Kyou had me held close to him, his chin resting on the top of my head. "K-Kyou...?"

"Mishi-Chan..." He turned me towards him, "why do you think I was fixing to hurt you?" Hurt was evident in his eyes. "I was just worried causing you weren't answering me." He wiped away my tears from my cheeks and nose.

"I-I'm sorry, Kyou-kun. I don't know why I thought you were going to hit me..." More tears accumulated at the corners of my eyes. "Please forgive me, Kyou..."

"It's ok. Just remember, I will never hurt you. I can't hurt you, Mi-Chan..."


	3. Swing With Me

Chapter 3-Swing with Me

As I walked back home, I heard something to my left. I looked to see my eldest daughter, Mishi, laughing.

It brought a slight happiness to me until a black hole consumed it and left nothing but blood-curdling anger. There, on the swings, was Mishi, the heiress to my fortune. She was laughing and smiling as she was pushed on the swings. But, by him.

That mongrel had no right to even be in my pathetic excuse for a daughter's presence. He had no parents, no family, nothing! Yet, there he was, laughing and carrying on, with my...my...my misfortune!

She was no daughter of mine! No child of mine would be ignorant enough to not see the wrong doing of befriending such…such a disgrace for man-kind.

Quickly, I hide behind the tree that stood beside me. I watched the two of them as they laughed, played, and enjoyed themselves.

I could do nothing to the boy, but oh, what I could do to my daughter. She won't be able to even remember the boy's name after I get a hold of her.

Soon, after swinging and talking while they lay in the grass next to each other in the grass, they left the little wooded park. Kyou grabbed Mishi's hand as they walked along the road. I gritted my teeth. Damn, that boy!

"Kyou-kun," Mishi turned to him as they walked, "I think I should be h-heading home. I-It's getting pretty late."

Indeed, it had gotten late. It had been long since that the sun retreated below the horizon. The sky had opened to show the twinkle of a million stars. Each shined brightly in their own way. Realizing this, I hurried along to be at the house to meet the two when she arrived at the front door.

Kyou smiled at her, "Alright." He hugged her tightly against his chest, "If it's ok, can I walk you home?" He looked down slightly with a light blush upon his cheeks.

She laughed at him. He looked at her, bewilderment in his eyes and confusion on his face.

She killed him on the cheek. "I was actually expecting you to walk me home." She walked faster, pulling him along the path with a smile on her face. He smiled at her, though she couldn't see him doing it.

I heard the thunder roll outside. I sat in my study, waiting for her to come home. I saw the lightning in the distance, flashing.

"A storms coming," my wife stated to me as she poured me my tea. "I hope she gets home soon." She sat the pot down on the tray and looked outside the window to the approaching rain.

I reached for my tea and, as I took a sip from the cup, I looked around the room. The only source of light was a flickering candle that sat in the middle of the table. Trickling water came upon the roof. It quickly changed to a down pour.

The lightning illuminated the inside of my study, and the rest of the town. I stood up and went to the window.

"Ahhh!" Footsteps hurried along the road, splashing up cold, muddy water onto their, once dry, pant's leg. "Run! Hurry, Kyou-kun!"

Mishi ran through the sudden on slaughter of freezing rain. Kyou was close behind her. I watched as they ran towards the house.

Turning away from the window, I went to the door, sliding it open and stepping out of the room. I said nothing when my wife asked me where I was going. I answered to very few people, and she was defiantly not one of them few. I walked through the halls and rooms till I found myself at the front door. Hearing laughter getting closer, I knew they were here. I sat, waiting, for the door to open.

Kyou and Mishi ran up to the front door, laughing and shivering. Kyou pulled her into a cold, yet warm, hug. Her face turned a darker shade of red. She smiled, wrapping her own arms around his waist.

"Thank you, Mishi," he whispered into her wet hair, "for caring for me."

Mishi pulled back some to look him in the eyes. She leaned up and quickly kissed him. But he grabbed her again, kissing her back, but long and with passion. She melted into his arms. Pressing against him, she brought her hand and ran her fingers through his soaked locks.

Then, the door opened. The two of them pulled away quickly to see me. I had seen everything through the door's small window. I glared at my daughter, as she twiddled her index fingers together and suddenly found the ground quite interesting. The boy though, he did quite the opposite. He stood up straight and tall. Staring straight ahead at me. He was taller and bigger than I had expected him to be.

He smiled at me, "Hello, sir." He bowed slightly, "goodnight, Nagano-sama." He then turned to Mishi and kissed her cheek as he hugged her quickly. "Good night, Mishi-Chan." He turned and slowly started walking away, out into the freezing rain of December.

"G-Good night," she took a few steps into the house, sliding past me, into the house before turning again around, "Kyou-kun…"

I looked at my daughter as she turned red and walked further into the house. Changing my view, I stared at the vanishing figure of trash that was Kyou Urinano.

The rain was still coming down strong on the house. Quietly, I shut the front door and turned around. My daughter was just entering the hallway.


	4. Dark Eyes

Chapter 4-Dark Eyes

"Where have you been?" My father asked after he closed the door.

'So close,' I thought to myself, 'I was almost in the clear.'

I turned around and face him. I took a deep breath to steady myself. I walked over to him.

"F-Father, I went out walking this morning after you left. And I-!"

Pain. Searing pain.

"And you went to see him?" My father screamed at me. I looked down to see his fist disappearing into my stomach. Blood dripped to the floor as I opened my mouth, trying to catch my breath. I fell down into my knees.

"F-Fath-?"

I flew back wards as his knee came in contact with my lower jaw. I spun in the air and hit the wooden floor, skidding to a painful stop.

Agonizing pain shot up and down my right arm. I could feel the broken Ulna bone in my forearm grind against itself as I tried to lift myself. Falling back to the floor, I cried out as my father walked closer. The lightning flashed and the thunder growled outside.

Suddenly, the look of my father's form terrified my very soul. My body convulsed into a shaking mass of pain and tears.

Reaching down, he grabbed me by my hair and shook me.

"You!" He hit me in the gut again, "You will stay away from that-that-!" He threw me to the ground. "That contemptible mutt! He will be the down fall of this family!" He shook me violently again, "Do you hear me?"

He lifted me off the ground and tossed me across the room to the far wall. I slowly rolled on to my side, trying to get on my hands and knees to crawl away. The rain fell harder.

Nita heard her sister's screams. She woke up with a jolt. "Big sister…" 'What had caused him to go off this time? Father has never beaten any of us on Christmas before.' The sound of things crashing echoed through the house and down the hall to her room. She quietly got out of her bed and opened her door. She snuck down the hall and peeked around the corner.

'If I can just make it to the hallway, then I sho-!' My thoughts were cut short as I felt a strong hand wrap its fingers around my ankle.

My eyes quickly opened wide. I dug my nails into the floor as I wished to be safe in my bed, wrapped in my down quilt. My hands slipped free and I crashed into another wall. My breath was gone, my arms were cut and bruised, my vision was blurry.

"Stop!" I saw my mother run towards me as she came from the hall. "Please, leave the child alone!" she came to my side, kneeling down next to me. She brushed the hair from my eyes, "I'm so sorry…"

She didn't have time to respond. She didn't have time to say anything before she was yanked away. Father had her by the throat, her feet barely touching the floor beneath her.

'No… Don't…touch her…' I watched in horror. His hand was firm on her neck. The veins and arteries in her neck were pulsing from being clenched so tightly closed. "No!" I don't know how but I got up to my feet and charged at him.

Nevertheless, his foot came in contact with my left temple. I fell to the ground five feet away.

My mother struggled for breath as his grip on her neck tightened. Her mouth opened, I could see her try to make-out words with her mouth.

'Run…away…' A tear ran down her cheek. As did one go down mine. I didn't want to leave her, not with him. But then, I saw him turn towards me. He looked on through the darkness, straight to my frailty. He took a step closer to me.

They moved by themselves. My feet pushed my body up, off the floor. Turning, they carried me on their own accord out the front door, into the freezing thunderstorm. I didn't stop nor did I turn around to look, I knew what was back there, my mother being choked by my father.

My little sister was probably crying away from fear. Hiding in her closet, and hoping father doesn't come after her next.

I ran, just ran. Faster when I heard my father screaming my name. Tears streamed from my blue eyes. Every bone, muscle and nerve in my body ached. Pleaded for a rest, and for warmth. The freezing rain not aiding any type of help, only adding to my struggle for escape.


	5. Thunderstorm

Chapter 5-Thunderstorm

I lay on my bed, staring out the window as the rain came down outside. I thought of my day and the night before.

I smiled.

Mishi was always there for me. And I wanted so badly to be there for her as much as I could. I wanted to make her happy.

I turned my head away from the window. Looking above my right shoulder, I saw the clock. It glowed in red 12:03 a.m.

Sighing, I grabbed a pillow and hugged it tightly. "I wish Mishi was in my arms instead of this stupid pillow…" I tossed it to the foot of the bed.

I awoke to a wild banging on my door. I looked up at the clock, it said two o'clock a.m.

"Who the hell is knocking on my freakin' door at two in the morning?" I threw the covers off me and they fell onto the floor. I jumped out of bed, stomping all the way to the door, ready to punch whoever was on the other aside of the door, still banging away at it.

When I got to the door, I opened it and my anger vanished just as fast as I had opened the door.

There, soaking wet, bloody, bruised, and crying, was Mishi. Her eyes looked up at me, praying for safety. The look on her face told me all that I needed to know. She was frightened.

I grabbed her right arm to pull her inside, but she screamed out in agony, jerking it away from my grip.

"I-It's b-bro-broken…," she finally said, cradling her arm against her chest, barely above a whisper.

So, I stepped aside, opening the door more so she could come inside, out of the frigid weather. She hesitated for a second, and then stepped inside. Closing the door behind us, I ushered her to the living room where I prompted her to sit and rest herself. I ran around the corner and to the hall closet. I grabbed a towel for her to dry off with and the first aid kit. As I came back to the living room, she was still holding her arm.

Kneeling down beside her, I wrapped the towel around her, and slowly and gently, started to dry her off.

We stayed silent for 10 minutes. She was dry now, except for her hair. I grabbed the blanket that was on the back of my couch. Replacing it with the towel, I sheathed her shivering body in the fuzzy warmth.

Her swollen, red eyes looked up at me. I wrapped my arms around her and held on to her trembling form. I leaned backwards, pulling her down with me, onto the couch. I could feel her damp clothes against my body. Her normally light purple hair was now a moist, dark purple color. She was still shivering but I didn't know if it was because she was still cold or still frightened.

I tightened my hold on the trembling girl till she calmed down.

It was now 10 minutes till 3 o'clock in the morning. My grip on the covers had tightened half an hour ago. That's when Mishi had calmed down enough to explain what had happened.

"A-and then," she said as she wiped away her tears for the millionth time, "he started to walk towards me. My feet...they just moved by themselves." She looked up at me from where she lay on the couch. "I can't believe I just left her there...My own mother..."

More tears poured from her eyes. I grabbed her shoulders and pulled her body against my chest.

"I have to go help her! Maybe there's still time before he hurts her too badly!" She jumped up and ran towards the door. I chased after her and jumped in front of the door. She tried to get around me but I didn't budge.

"Don't even think about it, Mishi..." I looked her directly in the eyes. "If you go out there, in your condition, a try to save her, you'll most likely just make it worse. For your mom, Nita, and yourself." I reached behind me and locked the dead bolt while putting on the chain.

Mishi just stared at me though her bangs and tears. She sighed and let her shoulders drop. Staring at the floor, she sniffled little. I walked up to her and, bending some, picked her up, bridal-style.

I kissed her on the forehead when she laid her head on my shoulder. "Mishi," I carried her into my bedroom, "I swear to you, I will never let your father hurt any of you ever again."

I sat her on my mattress and grabbed a big t-shirt of mine for her to sleep in, and tossed it to her. She looked a little confused when I also threw a towel on the bed, next to her. I just smiled at her.

"Thought you'd like to take a shower and get into some warm, clean clothes."

Her face had the look of "Duh" on it. I just chuckled at the expression, which caused her to become confused once again. She tilted her head to the right slightly and narrowed her eyes at me.

"What are you laughing at, Kyou-kun?" She grabbed the shirt and towel off the bed and walked over towards the door.

I kissed her quickly on the top of her head, "You just looked really adorable. That's all."

Her face turned pink then a dark red. She smiled at me, and gave me a peck on the cheek. "Thank you, Kyou-kun..." She left the room and went into the bathroom. As I lay down on the bed, I heard the shower start. I closed my eyes, but kept my arms open for when she came to bed.

That way, I could finally have her sleeping in my arms.


	6. Mother!

Chapter 6-Mother!

_Two days later_

"Kyou-kun...?" I walked into his kitchen to see him cooking something at the stove. He looked over his left shoulder at me.

"Yeah, what is it, Mi-Chan?" He turned around with 2 plates in hand. He placed them on the kitchen table, and sat down while pulling out the chair next to him. I sat down in the chair and grabbed the fork, but I didn't take a bite.

He noticed.

"Mishi?" He brushed my bangs out of my face, "Mishi, you o.k.?"

I nodded at him. "Yes, I'm o.k., but I want to go home. Just to make sure Mother and Nita are o.k." I looked at my eggs and pushed some around with the fork. "It's been 2 days. I'm worried about them, Kyou."

He hugged me quickly and stood up. "I know you are. I was gonna ask you after we got done with breakfast if you wanted to go see them." He grabbed his plate and put it on the counter. "You finish eating while I get dressed. We'll go to your house and make sure everything's o.k., along with getting your clothes and things." He smiled at me before turning the corner and walking out of the room.

After taking a few bites, what he said finally clicked inside my head. "What?" I screamed as I stood up, and ran out the room. I flew past his bedroom, seeing him not in there, continued around the hall corner.

Bam! My face, along with the rest of my body, hit wet, naked skin. Falling backwards, I felt my face turn red and the world around me blacken out. Kyou reached out to catch me as he hollered at me.

"Mishi! Hey, what the-? Are you o.k.?"

'Where am I?' I felt myself moving, but I wasn't walking. 'Am I...being carried?'

I slowly opened my eyes to see myself on Kyou's back while he walked through town. The sun was high, almost directly above our heads. The snow looked fresh on the ground. Did it snow again? I turned my head to get a better idea of where we were.

"Ah," Kyou turned his head to look at me, "you're finally awake." He smiled widely at me. "I was starting to worry. You did hit your head pretty hard."

He stopped and let me slip of his back. As my feet touched the ground, he turned around, and gently kissed my forehead. Grabbing my hand, he turned around and started pulling me along as he walked.

I realized as we came around the corner, just where we were. I looked up ahead to see my house in view. A lump in my throat grew and I wasn't able to swallow it. My hands became sticky and tense as we neared my front door. I could feel sweat run down my cheek and flow the rest of the way down my neck.

Then, my face turned bright red as I suddenly remembered what had caused me to faint in the first place. I turned my attention quickly to the ground. Finding the dirt quite interesting.

We entered the main room that was connected to the front entrance way. Everything was trashed. Furniture was broken, vases shattered, walls busted. A complete and total wreck.

And blood. It was everywhere. On the walls, floor, windows. Splattered as if it was art work made by splattering red paint on canvas. But I shuttered for a different reason.

It was so quiet. Even for our house, normally there was some noises, some kind of sound. But there was nothing. Looking around, I realized that the blood actually made a trail down the hall way. Was this where my blood had gotten on Father?

Leaving Kyou to survey the damage in the main room, I followed the path of blood down the hallway. I passed my room, door still closed. 'Why is it so quiet?' I saw my parents' room at the end of the hall. I paused a second at Nita's door. I thought about opening it and asking her about the blood. I thought about making sure she was ok, about seeing if he had hurt her, too. But I sighed and kept walking forward.

The blood went underneath the door, not quiet as much though. It had lessened down to almost nothing but drips and smears. I grabbed the door knob and turned it, thinking of the last time I saw both of my parents. My father strangling my mother, when she had only tried to save me from him.

"Ahhhh!"

Kyou heard my scream of terror from the main room. He ran down the hall as he screamed out my name, "Mishi!" He came up to me, squatting down next to where I lay on the floor. Tears formed and were set free in my eyes as I stared into the shadowy room. He looked on towards where I was looking and he himself gasped as he shuttered. There on the floor of my parents' bedroom floor laid my mother's broken, bruised, beaten body with a sword through her chest. The blood was dry and crusted around the blade and the wound. Her eyes were glazed with emptiness, staring directly at me.

There was a loud thump from the other end of the hall. I quickly turned around, thinking it might be my father. But I saw nothing. Kyou also looked confused. I heard it again. Where was it coming from? And what, or who, was causing it?

I got up off the floor with Kyou's help. Slowly I walked down the hall. I stepped gently, so I'd be able to hear the noise again.

Thump. There! Quickly, I opened the door to my sister's room. She was in a corner of her room. Gags were shoved into her mouth, and her hands and feet were bound by some rope. Bruises covered her body along with tears in her clothes. I ran over to her and quickly tried to untie the ropes. She struggled against my hands, I told her everything was ok, that I was here now and that she was safe. But she couldn't hear me. There was a cloth around her head that covered ears.

She had been in the dark, in the silence, bound and gagged for days. And it was cause of me. I grabbed her by the arms and held her close. I tried to calm her down by rubbing her back with my left hand as I used my left to untie all of the cloth and ropes and gags.


	7. Chasing

Chapter 7-Chasing

_Three days later_

I woke up at 8 a.m. this morning. I hadn't the will or appetite to eat anything. My mother was killed by my own father. My father was arrested for third-degree murder. The only person that I had left in the world was my older sister, Mishi. Yet, the past night, she had stayed at Kyou-kun's home. So, I was left alone, in this house that my mother was killed in by my father's hand. That so much abuse and misery held within its very walls.

I lay on the bed for an hour before I heard a knock at my door. I didn't get up to open it. I knew who it was. So I just kept still, staring up at the ceiling.

"Nita-Chan?" Mishi walked into my room. "Are you awake?" She stepped in and closed the door behind her.

"Yes…" I mumbled I didn't want to go. I wasn't ready to go, not yet. How could anybody ever be ready to go to their own mother's funeral?

She came and quietly sat on the edge of my bed. She was wearing a black kimono that fit her well. Small, red buds decorated and covered the silk. A crimson wrap was around her waist. Her long purple hair, pinned up in to buns, hair sticks in each to hold them up. Her eyes were very red and puffy, yet she wore a smile. It was a small, timid one, but a smile nonetheless. Her right arm was in a cast, I guess father had broken it the other night.

"Thank you," I said to her as I slowly sat up. Looking at her, a tear came to my eye, and jumped over my eye lid. As if it would be better on my bed comforter than in my eye.

I slid over to the end of my bed and grabbed my Kimono. It was gray, with dark blue butterflies on it. It was Mother's funeral kimono when she was my age. I treasured it when she gave it to me. Now I will cherish it forever. Another tear fell from my eye. Quickly, I changed. Mishi helped me wrap the white ribbon around my waist.

I turned around and hugged her. "Thank you, Onee-san."

Kyou smiled at us as we exited the house. He was leaning against a wall, on the other side of the street. I walked over to him and gave him a small hug. Mishi came up and grabbed his right arm with her left. I started walking down the sidewalk.

Then I felt a hand slip in mine. It wasn't small, but large and it was rough. I looked down at the hand and followed up the arm with my eyes to find the owner of the hand to be Kyou. I turned red.

"Haha," he looked over at Mishi, "now I can see how ya'll are sisters." He looked back at me with a warm smile. He was the only guy that I didn't have a problem with. The only one that I wasn't afraid of. I smiled back at him and squeezed his hand a little as we headed for the funeral home.

It had started snowing by the time we got to the grave yard. More people than we thought would have had shown up. Almost all of mothers' old friends had shown up. They all were crying. Even though they had been run off by our father, they still loved and cared for mother. They came up to us to tell us how sorry they were. They came to pay their respects to her.

_Five Weeks Later_

"Mr. Taisuke Nagano, please stand." The judge looked at father, firmness in his voice. He then looked over at the jury. "Has the jury reached a verdict?"

A man with short blonde hair rose up. "Yes we have, your Honor." He looked down at a piece of paper. "In the case of Taisuke Nagano v. the State," I looked at Mishi and squeezed her hand, "we the jury fined Taisuke Nagano…."

I could see Father Gulp as sweat started at his brow.

"Guilty, in the murder of Jima Nagano." He looked back down as we sighed in relief. "We also find him guilty of Child Abuse against his daughters, Mishi Nagano and Nita Nagano."

Father turned around as Mishi and I embraced each other with a hug and tears. Free. We were finally free.

"Taisuke Nagano, I hear by sentence you to life in prison, with no chance of parole." A cop came and hand-cuffed him. He pushed him towards the side door as the judge banged his gable down. "Case dismissed."


End file.
